# Electoral history of John Major

This is a summary of the electoral history of John Major, who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1990 to 1997. He was the Member of Parliament (MP) for Huntingdon from 1979 to 2001.

## Council elections
### 1964 Lambeth London Borough Council election, Larkhall

Larkhall (3) :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | A.J. Crouch | 1,901 | 66.5 | |
| | Labour | G.A. Gold | 1,875 | | |
| | Labour | W.F. King | 1,861 | | |
| | Conservative | J.H. Chambers | 774 | 27.1 | |
| | Conservative | J.R. Major | 752 | | |
| | Conservative | E. Brady | 740 | | |
| | Communist | S.G. Hope | 107 | 3.7 | |
| | Independent | P.R. Winchester | 77 | 2.7 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,755 | 24.5 | |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 11,243 | | |
| | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) |
| | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) |
| | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) |

### 1968 Lambeth London Borough Council election, Ferndale

Ferndale (3) :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Conservative | J.E. Langley | 1,025 | 18.0% |
| | Conservative | G.R.I. Allnut | 1,002 | 17.6% |
| | Conservative | John Roy Major | 991 | 17.4% |
| | Labour | L.G.M. Davis | 921 | 16.2% |
| | Labour | J.M. Dodson | 892 | 15.7% |
| | Labour | D.J. Packer | 863 | 15.2% |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 5,694 | |
| | Conservative gain from Labour | Conservative gain from Labour | Swing | |
| | Conservative gain from Labour | Conservative gain from Labour | Swing | |
| | Conservative gain from Labour | Conservative gain from Labour | Swing | |

### 1971 Lambeth London Borough Council election, Thornton

Thornton (3) :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour | D. W. Wendon | 2,205 | 15.3% |
| | Labour | W. P. Weston | 2,176 | 15.1% |
| | Labour | H. A. Bavin | 2,167 | 15.1% |
| | Conservative | A. E. S. Meyer | 2,065 | 14.4% |
| | Conservative | John Major | 2,061 | 14.3% |
| | Conservative | J. S. Steele | 2,055 | 14.3% |
| | Liberal | J. P. Taylor | 205 | 1.4% |
| | Liberal | A. G. Blackmore | 182 | 1.3% |
| | Liberal | Mrs M. A. Granger | 178 | 1.2% |
| | Communist | Mrs J. E. Styles | 80 | 0.6% |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 14,376 | |
| | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative |
| | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative |
| | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative |

## Parliamentary elections
### February 1974 general election, St Pancras North

General election February 1974: St Pancras North :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Albert Stallard | 14,761 | 52.76 | |
| | Conservative | John Major | 7,926 | 28.33 | |
| | Liberal | Paul J Medlicott | 4,825 | 17.25 | New |
| | Communist | Gordon McLennan | 466 | 1.67 | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 6,835 | 24.43 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 27,978 | 67.53 | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |

### October 1974 general election, St Pancras North

General election October 1974: St Pancras North :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour | Albert Stallard | 14,155 | 58.53 |
| | Conservative | John Major | 6,602 | 27.30 |
| | Liberal | Paul J Medlicott | 3,428 | 14.17 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 7,553 | 31.23 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 24,185 | 58.10 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +3.4 |

### 1979 general election, Huntingdonshire

General election 1979: Huntingdonshire :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | John Major | 40,193 | 55.3 | +10.2 |
| | Labour | Julian G H Fulbrook | 18,630 | 25.7 | −3.9 |
| | Liberal | Dennis Graham Rowe | 12,812 | 17.6 | −7.7 |
| | National Front | K T Robinson | 983 | 1.4 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 21,563 | 29.6 | +14.1 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 72.618 | 77.4 | +2.3 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | +7.1 | |

### 1983 general election, Huntingdon

General election 1983: Huntingdon :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | John Major | 34,254 | 62.4 | |
| | Liberal | Sheila Gatiss | 13,906 | 25.3 | |
| | Labour | Mark Slater | 6,317 | 11.5 | |
| | Ecology | Timothy Eiloart | 444 | 0.8 | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 20,348 | 37.1 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 54,921 | 71.6 | |
| | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) |

### 1987 general election, Huntingdon

General election 1987: Huntingdon :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | John Major | 40,530 | 63.6 | +1.2 |
| | SDP | Anthony Nicholson | 13,486 | 21.1 | –4.2 |
| | Labour | David Brown | 8,883 | 13.9 | +2.4 |
| | Green | William Lavin | 874 | 1.4 | +0.6 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 27,044 | 42.5 | +5.4 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 63,773 | 74.0 | +2.4 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |

### 1992 general election, Huntingdon

General election 1992: Huntingdon :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | John Major | 48,662 | 66.2 | +2.6 |
| | Labour | Hugh Seckleman | 12,432 | 16.9 | +3.0 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Andrew Duff | 9,386 | 12.8 | –8.3 |
| | Liberal | Paul Wiggin | 1,045 | 1.4 | N/A |
| | Green | Deborah Birkhead | 846 | 1.2 | –0.2 |
| | Monster Raving Loony | Screaming Lord Sutch | 728 | 1.0 | N/A |
| | Conservative Thatcherite | Michael Flanagan | 231 | 0.3 | N/A |
| | Gremloids | Lord Buckethead | 107 | 0.1 | N/A |
| | Forward to Mars Party | Charles S. Cockell | 91 | 0.1 | N/A |
| | Natural Law | David Shepherd | 26 | 0.0 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 36,230 | 49.3 | +6.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 73,554 | 79.2 | +5.2 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | –0.2 | |

### 1997 general election, Huntingdon

The constituency underwent boundary changes prior to the 1997 election and the changes are not based on the 1992 result.
General election 1997: Huntingdon :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | John Major | 31,501 | 55.3 | –9.9 |
| | Labour | Jason Reece | 13,361 | 23.5 | +6.6 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Matthew Owen | 8,390 | 14.7 | –6.4 |
| | Referendum | David Bellamy | 3,114 | 5.5 | N/A |
| | UKIP | Charles Coyne | 331 | 0.6 | N/A |
| | Christian Democrat | Veronica Hufford | 177 | 0.3 | N/A |
| | Independent | Duncan Robertson | 89 | 0.2 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 18,140 | 31.8 | –6.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 56,963 | 74.9 | –4.3 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | –8.25 | |

## Conservative Party leadership elections
### 1990 leadership election

Second ballot: 27 November 1990 :
| Candidate | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | John Major | 185 | 49.7 |
| | Michael Heseltine | 131 | 35.2 |
| | Douglas Hurd | 56 | 15.1 |
| Majority | Majority | 54 | 14.5 |
| Turnout | Turnout | 372 | 100 |
| Third ballot required ||||

### 1995 leadership election

Only ballot: 4 July 1995 :
| Candidate | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | John Major | 218 | 66.3 |
| | John Redwood | 89 | 27.1 |
| | Abstentions | 10 | 3.0 |
| | Spoilt | 12 | 3.6 |
| Majority | Majority | 129 | 39.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | 329 | N/A |
| John Major re-elected ||||

## United Kingdom general elections
### 1992 general election

UK general election 1992 :
| | | | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Votes | Votes | Votes |
| Party | Party | Leader | Stood | Elected | Gained | Unseated | Net | % of total | % | No. | Net % |
| | Conservative | John Major | 645 | 336 | 3 | 44 | −41 | 51.69 | 41.9 | 14,094,116 | −0.3 |
| | Labour | Neil Kinnock | 634 | 271 | 43 | 1 | +42 | 41.62 | 34.4 | 11,557,062 | +3.6 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Paddy Ashdown | 632 | 20 | 4 | 6 | −2 | 3.07 | 17.8 | 6,027,038 | −4.8 |
| | SNP | Alex Salmond | 72 | 3 | | | | 0.46 | 1.9 | 629,552 | +0.6 |
| | UUP | James Molyneaux | 13 | 9 | | | | 1.38 | 0.8 | 270,749 | 0.0 |
| | SDLP | John Hume | 13 | 4 | 1 | | +1 | 0.61 | 0.5 | 184,445 | 0.0 |
| | Green | Jean Lambert and Richard Lawson | 253 | 0 | | | | 0.0 | 0.5 | 170,047 | +0.2 |
| | Plaid Cymru | Dafydd Wigley | 38 | 4 | 1 | | +1 | 0.61 | 0.5 | 156,796 | +0.1 |
| | DUP | Ian Paisley | 7 | 3 | | | | 0.46 | 0.3 | 103,039 | 0.0 |
| | Sinn Féin | Gerry Adams | 14 | 0 | | 1 | −1 | 0.0 | 0.2 | 78,291 | −0.1 |
| | Alliance | John Alderdice | 16 | 0 | | | | 0.0 | 0.2 | 68,695 | 0.0 |
| | Liberal | Michael Meadowcroft | 73 | 0 | | | | 0.0 | 0.2 | 64,744 | |
| | Natural Law | Geoffrey Clements | 309 | 0 | | | | 0.0 | 0.2 | 62,888 | |
| | Ind. Social Democrat | N/A | 2 | 0 | | | | 0.0 | 0.1 | 28,599 | |
| | Independent | N/A | 6 | 0 | | | | 0.0 | 0.1 | 22,844 | |
| | UPUP | James Kilfedder | 1 | 1 | | | | 0.15 | 0.1 | 19,305 | 0.0 |
| | Ind. Conservative | N/A | 12 | 0 | | | | 0.0 | 0.1 | 11,356 | |
| | Monster Raving Loony | Screaming Lord Sutch | 25 | 0 | | | | 0.0 | 0.1 | 7,929 | +0.1 |
| | Independent | N/A | 23 | 0 | | | | 0.0 | 0.1 | 7,631 | |
| | BNP | John Tyndall | 13 | 0 | | | | 0.0 | 0.1 | 7,631 | |
| | SDP | John Bates | 8 | 0 | | | | 0.0 | 0.1 | 6,649 | |
| | Scottish Militant Labour | Tommy Sheridan | 1 | 0 | | | | 0.0 | 0.1 | 6,287 | |
| | National Front | John McAuley | 14 | 0 | | | | 0.0 | 0.1 | 4,816 | |
| | True Labour | Sydney Bidwell | 1 | 0 | | | | 0.0 | 0.1 | 4,665 | |
| | Anti-Federalist | Alan Sked | 17 | 0 | | | | 0.0 | 0.1 | 4,383 | |
| | Workers' Party | Marian Donnelly | 8 | 0 | | | | 0.0 | 0.1 | 4,359 | 0.0 |
| | Official Conservative Hove Party | Nigel Furness | 1 | 0 | | | | 0.0 | 0.0 | 2,658 | |
| | Loony Green | Stuart Hughes | 5 | 0 | | | | 0.0 | 0.0 | 2,538 | |
| | Ind. Unionist | N/A | 1 | 0 | | | | 0.0 | 0.0 | 2,256 | |
| | New Agenda | Proinsias De Rossa | 2 | 0 | | | | 0.0 | 0.0 | 2,133 | |
| | Independent Progressive Socialist | N/A | 1 | 0 | | | | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1,094 | |
| | Islamic Party | David Pidcock | 4 | 0 | | | | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1,085 | |
| | Revolutionary Communist | Frank Furedi | 8 | 0 | | | | 0.0 | 0.0 | 745 | |
| | Independent Nationalist | N/A | 1 | 0 | | | | 0.0 | 0.0 | 649 | |
| | Communist (PCC) | Jack Conrad | 4 | 0 | | | | 0.0 | 0.0 | 603 | |
All parties with more than 500 votes shown. Plaid Cymru result includes votes for Green/Plaid Cymru Alliance.
| Government's new majority | 21 |
| Total votes cast | 33,614,074 |
| Turnout | 77.7% |

### 1997 general election

1997 United Kingdom general election :
| | | | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Candidates | Votes | Votes | Votes |
| Party | Party | Leader | Stood | Elected | Gained | Unseated | Net | % of total | % | No. | Net % |
| | Labour | Tony Blair | 639 | 419 | 146 | 0 | +146 | 63.4 | 43.2 | 13,518,167 | +8.8 |
| | Conservative | John Major | 648 | 165 | 0 | 178 | –178 | 25.0 | 30.7 | 9,591,085 | –11.2 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Paddy Ashdown | 639 | 46 | 30 | 2 | +28 | 7.0 | 16.8 | 5,242,947 | –1.0 |
| | Referendum | James Goldsmith | 547 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 2.6 | 811,849 | N/A |
| | SNP | Alex Salmond | 72 | 6 | 3 | 0 | +3 | 0.9 | 2.0 | 621,550 | +0.1 |
| | UUP | David Trimble | 16 | 10 | 1 | 0 | +1 | 1.5 | 0.8 | 258,349 | 0.0 |
| | SDLP | John Hume | 18 | 3 | 0 | 1 | –1 | 0.5 | 0.6 | 190,814 | +0.1 |
| | Plaid Cymru | Dafydd Wigley | 40 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.6 | 0.5 | 161,030 | 0.0 |
| | Sinn Féin | Gerry Adams | 17 | 2 | 2 | 0 | +2 | 0.3 | 0.4 | 126,921 | 0.0 |
| | DUP | Ian Paisley | 9 | 2 | 0 | 1 | –1 | 0.3 | 0.3 | 107,348 | 0.0 |
| | UKIP | Alan Sked | 193 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.3 | 105,722 | N/A |
| | Independent | N/A | 25 | 1 | 1 | 0 | +1 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 64,482 | 0.0 |
| | Alliance | John Alderdice | 17 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.2 | 62,972 | 0.0 |
| | Green | Peg Alexander and David Taylor | 89 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.2 | 61,731 | –0.2 |
| | Socialist Labour | Arthur Scargill | 64 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.2 | 52,109 | N/A |
| | Liberal | Michael Meadowcroft | 53 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.1 | 45,166 | –0.1 |
| | BNP | John Tyndall | 57 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.1 | 35,832 | 0.0 |
| | Natural Law | Geoffrey Clements | 197 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.1 | 30,604 | –0.1 |
| | Speaker | Betty Boothroyd | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | | 0.1 | 23,969 | |
| | ProLife Alliance | Bruno Quintavalle | 56 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.1 | 19,332 | N/A |
| | UK Unionist | Robert McCartney | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | +1 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 12,817 | N/A |
| | PUP | Hugh Smyth | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.0 | 10,928 | N/A |
| | National Democrats | Ian Anderson | 21 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.0 | 10,829 | N/A |
| | Socialist Alternative | Peter Taaffe | | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.0 | 9,906 | N/A |
| | Scottish Socialist | Tommy Sheridan | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.0 | 9,740 | N/A |
| | Independent | N/A | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.0 | 9,233 | – 0.1 |
| | Ind. Conservative | N/A | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.0 | 8,608 | –0.1 |
| | Monster Raving Loony | Screaming Lord Sutch | 24 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.0 | 7,906 | –0.1 |
| | Make Politicians History | Rainbow George Weiss | 29 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.0 | 3,745 | N/A |
| | NI Women's Coalition | Monica McWilliams and Pearl Sagar | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.0 | 3,024 | N/A |
| | Workers' Party | Tom French | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.0 | 2,766 | –0.1 |
| | National Front | John McAuley | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.0 | 2,716 | N/A |
| | Cannabis Law Reform | Howard Marks | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.0 | 2,085 | N/A |
| | Socialist People's Party | Jim Hamezian | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.0 | 1,995 | N/A |
| | Mebyon Kernow | Loveday Jenkin | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.0 | 1,906 | N/A |
| | Scottish Green | Robin Harper | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.0 | 1,721 | |
| | Conservative Anti-Euro | Christopher Story | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.0 | 1,434 | N/A |
| | Socialist (GB) | None | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.0 | 1,359 | N/A |
| | Community Representative | Ralph Knight | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.0 | 1,290 | N/A |
| | Neighborhood association | | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.0 | 1,263 | N/A |
| | SDP | John Bates | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.0 | 1,246 | –0.1 |
| | Workers Revolutionary | Sheila Torrance | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.0 | 1,178 | N/A |
| | Real Labour | N/A | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.0 | 1,117 | N/A |
| | Independent Democrat | N/A | | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.0 | 982 | |
| | Independent | N/A | | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.0 | 890 | |
| | Communist | Mike Hicks | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.0 | 639 | |
| | Independent | N/A | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.0 | 593 | |
| | Green (NI) | | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.0 | 539 | |
| | Socialist Equality | Davy Hyland | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0.0 | 505 | |
The Popular Unionist MP elected in 1992 died in 1995, and the party folded shortly afterwards.
| Government's new majority | 179 |
| Total votes cast | 31,286,284 |
| Turnout | 71.3% |